Stunning Video: Python Seen Swallowing 77 Pound Deer

A Burmese python was caught on video swallowing a 77-pound white-tailed deer in South Florida. According to biologists, this feat proves that the invasive predators are capable of eating larger prey than previously thought.

In a study published in August by University of Kansas Reptiles & Amphibians titled “Big pythons, big gape, and big prey,” biologists said the deer, native to the Florida Peninsula, makes up 66.9 percent of the snake’s body mass. The feeding was observed and captured on video by scientists in December 2022 and is part of a study aimed at better understanding the impact pythons have on the environment.

“This was the most intense and impressive sight we have seen in the 12 years we have been tracking pythons in Southwest Florida,” said Ian Bartoszek, one of the study’s co-authors Live Science. “It was really primal and felt like a scene that has been happening for millions of years wherever there are large snakes.”

“Unfortunately, our native Florida wildlife did not evolve with this apex predator, and you can see that result in these images.”

Scientists said in the study that the python that consumed the deer was the smallest snake included in their research. Two other snakes were also captured and observed to measure a python’s gape – the maximum size the animal’s mouth can open.

All three snakes were between 15 and 19 feet long and had a mouth diameter of 10.2 inches and a circumference of 32 inches, respectively. That exceeds the previously observed maximum distance for pythons of 8.66 inches.

Newsweek reached out to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, which released the study, via email Thursday for more information.

Scientists have long grappled with the question of how to control Florida’s python population. The species, native to Asia, was first spotted in the Everglades in 1979 and has since seen an explosive increase in its populations, leading to the destruction of the local ecosystem. Pythons are considered apex predators, meaning they are not hunted by any other animal.

Among other things, the state has taken measures to curb the python population by hosting an annual Python Challenge where people can hunt the snakes for a reward. Participants can win more than $25,000 in cash. This year the challenge took place from August 9th to 18th.

One of the largest pythons ever spotted in the Everglades was caught in 2022 and measured nearly 18 feet long. The female was carrying 122 eggs and weighed 215 pounds at this time.